Law / United States / Montana
Sexual abuse of children, computer-generated child pornography
A citation is an address, not a summary. The first part names the law; what follows narrows it to the exact section, article or paragraph.
In force.
An AI prohibited practices rule binding public and private bodies.
As of 6 September 2026.
What it requires
- Do not knowingly possess, process, develop, print, publish, transport, distribute, sell, exhibit, or advertise computer-generated child pornography or any other visual or print medium depicting a child engaged in actual or simulated sexual conduct
- Computer-generated child pornography includes an altered image of an actual minor, an adult altered to appear as a minor, or a depiction virtually indistinguishable from an actual minor engaged in prohibited sexual conduct
- It is not a defense that the perceived child is an adult or a law enforcement officer
If you get it wrong
Criminal exposureYes
Criminal exposure note
A general conviction carries life imprisonment or up to 100 years and a fine up to $10,000; a possession-only conviction under subsection (1)(e) carries a fine up to $10,000 or up to 10 years imprisonment, or both; where the victim is 12 or younger and the offender is 18 or older, the offender faces a mandatory 100-year term with the first 25 years neither suspendable nor parole-eligible, plus a fine up to $50,000.
Penalty structure
General offense: fine up to $10,000, plus life imprisonment or up to 100 years. Possession alone (subsection (1)(e)): fine up to $10,000 or up to 10 years imprisonment, or both. Aggravated tier, victim 12 or younger and offender 18 or older: mandatory 100-year term (first 25 years neither suspendable nor parole-eligible), fine up to $50,000, and lifetime supervision after release.
- Rule
- Fixed only
- As of
- 6 September 2026
- Currency
- USD
- Fixed cap
- 50,000
What it reaches
Obligation class
Prohibition
What this law does
Drafted with AI from the cited sources under the direction of UnGovr staff. UnGovr holds editorial responsibility for this page.
The sexual abuse of children statute makes it an offense to knowingly possess, process, develop, print, publish, transport, distribute, sell, exhibit, or advertise a visual or print medium in which a child is engaged in actual or simulated sexual conduct, and its possession offense expressly reaches computer-generated child pornography.
That term covers a depiction of an actual minor created, adapted, or modified to portray the minor engaged in prohibited sexual conduct, a depiction of an actual adult altered to portray the adult as a minor engaged in such conduct, or a depiction that is virtually indistinguishable from an actual minor engaged in such conduct, so an entirely synthetic, AI-generated image falls within the offense on the same terms as a photograph.
A general conviction carries life imprisonment or up to 100 years and a fine up to $10,000; a conviction resting solely on possession of the prohibited material carries a fine up to $10,000 or up to 10 years imprisonment, or both; and where the victim is 12 years of age or younger and the offender is 18 or older, the offender faces a mandatory 100-year term, with the first 25 years neither suspendable nor parole-eligible, a fine up to $50,000, and lifetime supervision after release.
When LexLint raises it
generates_content
Read the law
official Montana Code Annotated, live codified text, leg.mt.gov